Moon

Moon is the amazing debut feature film from David Bowie's own offspring, Duncan Jones. In Moon, Jones has crafted easily one of the best science fiction movies in the past decade. What is great about the film is the simplicity Jones brings to what becomes a very complex plot. It feels like instead of being a new kid on the block, Jones has been living in this realm for years.

The movie focuses mainly on two characters, with only one being actually alive. Sam Bell is fulfilling a contract to run a mining station on the moon. His only companion is a robotic assistant named GERTY. It is a lonely life which Sam fills adequately with the routine inspections of the mining station and his unique bond with GERTY. But then something extraordinary happens and Sam finds that not everything is as it seems.

As I stated earlier, the movie is very simple in its setup and progression. It is the performance of Sam Rockwell who plays Bell that lends to the complexity to the film. Rockwell is simply outstanding, and without giving to much away, he plays extremes within his character easily, shifting gears when asked and giving the viewer much more then we think we need. Which is not surprising. I feel Rockwell is one of the most underrated actors working in Hollywood today. His range is immense. Look at two other movies he has been in: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind. Two roles from films on opposite ends of the spectrum and Rockwell delivers a solid performance each time.

Jones has said in the past that this movie was written with Sam Rockwell in mind. They wanted to work with each other and Jones began work on what would eventually become Moon. He is an admitted Sci-fi nerd and the are plenty of homages to past sci-fi films, most notably Blade Runner and 2001: A Space Odyssey. Gerty (voiced by Kevin Spacey) is the more compassionate side of HAL 2000, if it is believed that HAL is capable of compassion (fodder for a future essay perhaps?).

Jones is already hard at work on his second feature, which again seems to be based in science fiction, titled Source Code. I am excited at the prospect of seeing another completed film from this young man. His future seems very very bright.

**On a side note, the Moon DVD also has Jones' short film, Whistle. Check it out. It's a very interesting, well-executed flick.

Grade: A